Calling All Applicants

PRESCOTT - If you were one of the applicants for the position of superintendent of the Prescott School District, the Times is interested in hearing from you. After an executive session last week, Prescott School Board Chair Karen Tonne issued a short statement saying the district is chosing not to interview a single one of the seven candidates for the superintendent's position, reportedly because the board wants to have a larger pool of recruits to consider. Instead, the board will consider appointing an interim superintendent while seeking more applications. It will discuss the interim appointment during a 6 p.m. executive session prior to the board's regular meeting on Aug. 26.

It is unclear at this point if retired superintendent Dr. Carolyn Marsh can or will be considered for the interim position. State law only allows school districts to rehire retirees if no other qualified candidates can be found. The Times is interested to learn more about the recent applicants to get a better sense of their professional qualifications.

The newspaper submitted a Freedom Of Information Act documents request to obtain copies of the applications and resumes directly from the district. In her prompt response to this request, Tonne said the district cannot act on it because the Washington Public Records Law - RCW 42.56.250 exempts from public inspection and copying "all applicants for public employment, including the names of the applicants, resumes, and other related materials submitted with respect to an applicant."

Although this means school districts are exempt from sharing the applicants' information, it's unclear if the law is specifically intended to prohibit districts from doing so. Either way, the Times could not find any statute barring the applicants themselves

from sharing details of their applications to the district. So while the district itself appears to be in no position

to shed more light on the applicants' background, the Times hopes the candidates themselves will come forward voluntarily to do so. Please contact publisher@waitsburgtimes.com or call 509-337-6631.